Pancreatic Cancer Overview

The pancreas is an organ
in the upper abdomen located beneath the stomach and adjacent to the first
portion of the small intestine,
called the duodenum. The
pancreas is composed of glands that are responsible for a wide variety of tasks.
The glandular functions of the pancreas can be divided into the following two
categories:

Exocrine: The exocrine
glands secrete enzymes into ducts that eventually empty into the duodenum. These
enzymes then help in the digestion of food as it moves through the intestines.

Endocrine: The endocrine
glands secrete hormones, including insulin, into the bloodstream. Insulin is
carried by the blood throughout the rest of the body to assist in the process of
using sugar as an energy source. Insulin also controls the levels of sugar in
the blood.

The pancreas can be divided into the following four anatomical sections:

Head -- The rightmost portion that lies adjacent to the duodenum

Uncinate process -- An extension of the head of the pancreas

Body -- The middle portion of the pancreas

Tail -- The leftmost portion of the pancreas that lies adjacent to the
spleen

Intraductal papillary mucinous
neoplasia (IPMN) is a type of pancreatic cancer that is beginning to be
recognized more frequently. This pancreatic cancer has a better prognosis than
other types of pancreatic cancer. Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasia is
usually diagnosed endoscopically (see Pancreatic Cancer Diagnosis).

The most common type of pancreatic cancer arises from the exocrine glands and
is called adenocarcinoma of
the pancreas. The endocrine glands of the pancreas can give rise to a completely
different type of cancer, referred to as pancreatic
neuroendocrine carcinoma
or islet cell tumor. This
article only discusses issues related to the more common type of pancreatic
adenocarcinoma.

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma is among the most aggressive of
all cancers. By the time that pancreatic cancer is diagnosed, many people already
have disease that has spread to distant sites in the body (about 53%). Pancreatic cancer is
also relatively resistant to medical treatment, and the only potentially
curative treatment is surgery. In 2010, approximately 43,000 people in the
United States were diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and approximately 36,000
people died of this disease. These numbers reflect the challenge in treating
pancreatic cancer and the relative lack of curative options.